Can I Turn my BBQ into a smoker?
Mar 29, 2020 · The short answer is yes, but you plan to cook a lot of barbecue we recommend having a dedicated smoker. Gas grills are not designed to smoke meat. The gaps around the …
Can You Grill on a smoker?
Jan 20, 2022 · Yes you can use a smoker to grill! There are many advantages of using a smoker for grilling. A smoker grill can be used to cook a variety of meats and vegetables, as well as …
Should I buy an indoor or outdoor smoker?
May 09, 2014 · You can transform an ordinary barbecue into a smoker with these easy steps. Step 1 Build your fire Start early – smoking takes a long time. Light a fire of lumpwood …
What food can you smoke in a smoker?
Only turn on the burners directly below the wood chips to medium heat. This will allow the wood chips to heat up and generate smoke without subjecting the food to direct heat. Step Close lid …
How to Grill Food In A Smoker
So you know that you can grill food in a smoker but the question is how to do so. Isn’t it? Well, you just need to purchase or use your existing offset smoker. FYI, an offset smoker is a type of smoker that has a pretty big cooking chamber along with a firebox located on the right side of the smoker to place the fuel source.
Bottom Line
Hope this comprehensive guide will help you to grill on a smoker. If anyone asks you “Can you grill on a smoker?” you are now capable to answer them. What do you think? If you follow these steps then you will grill your food with your existing smoker. You don’t have to buy a separate grill along with the smoker.
Understanding Grills
Grills come in many shapes, sizes, and energy sources, and they’re still the most popular way to cook meat outdoors, even though times have changed. The grill used to be a solely outdoor cooking tool – you’d fill it with charcoal, light it up, and then snap on the lid if you want a smokier flavor.
5 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Smoker vs. Grill
There are many reasons to choose a smoker or a grill. Grills and smokers both serve some pretty specific purposes, but because they both have flexibility, there is still a debate. Based on the following questions, you can get a feel for which type of device fits your needs.
Smoking Your Food: What Tastes Good or Works Best?
Smokers are not the same as grills – they really are most appropriate for meat and nothing else, whereas you can grill plant foods such as corn or even tofu on a grill, but they won’t survive the slow-cook of a smoker. If you’re wondering what food to smoke in a smoker, the answer will always be meat and poultry.
Ever Thought of Going Pro?
Are you a pro with smokers? If you’ve garnered some experience, you’re probably wondering if there is a way to profit off of it. Yes, of course! Here are 3 ways you can vie for recognition and even prize money:
Soak wood chips
First, soak your wood chips in water for at least an hour to prepare them for the grill.
Remove cooking grate
While soaking the chips, remove the cooking grate from your gas grill and determine your burner orientation and number of burner zones. Some burners may run from side to side, others from front to back.
Half for food, other half for wood
Once you understand the layout of your grill burners, choose about half of the grill for food and the rest for wood.
Cover burners with foil
With aluminum foil, cover the portion of your burners that are directly below the area for food to catch drippings and prevent flare-ups.
Put pan above heaters for wood
Once soaked, place the wood chips into the pans directly above the burners. Replace the cooking grate over the area that you have chosen for food.
Turn burners to medium
Only turn on the burners directly below the wood chips to medium heat. This will allow the wood chips to heat up and generate smoke without subjecting the food to direct heat.
Close lid and heat to 285° f
Once the grill reaches 285 degrees, quickly open the grill and place the food on the cooking grates over the un-lit side. Then, keep the lid closed to provide great smoke penetration.
Now that you have the right tools, let's get your grill set-up for smoking
Setting up a gas grill for smoking can be very easy, especially if the grill is equipped with a built-in smoker box; however, there is a way to create smoke even without a built-in smoker box.
Cedar Planking
You can also use a cedar plank on your gas grill to get awesome results. Get my tips and bonus recipe here on how to use a cedar plank .
The Origins of "Barbecue"
According to Merriam-Webster, the word "barbecue" derives from the Spanish word "barbacòa." Barbacòa itself may derive from a similar sounding word used by the Taino, indigenous people of the Caribbean.
The Origins of "Grilling"
"Grilling" derives from the French word "grille" which refers to any type of decorative metal grating in a gridiron pattern.
The Origins of "Smoking"
The word "smoke" when referring to the visible byproduct of fire, is one of the oldest words in the English language. We say it pretty much the same way as Old English speakers did 1,000 years ago. Use of "smoking" to refer to a method of cooking food seems to be an American English innovation.
Barbecue, Grilling, and Smoking Today
When we talk about barbecue, grilling, and smoking now, we're usually talking about cooking food outdoors with some sort of flame or combustion as the heat source. All three terms fall along a spectrum of outdoor cooking.
What Is Barbecue?
As it's used today, the word "barbecue" is an overarching term. You might talk about barbecuing steak, or barbecuing brisket. Even though these are very different cooking processes ( steak takes ten minutes and brisket takes ten hours) most people would know what you're talking about.
What Is Grilling?
"Grilling" is in a specific place on the outdoor cooking spectrum. As mentioned above, the name derives from the iron grates used to sear food over open flames.
What Is Smoking?
"Smoking" is on the other end of the outdoor cooking spectrum, and refers to low and slow cooking over indirect heat. The food gets cooked by a heat source that isn't directly beneath it.
Days Before
Review recipes for any advance steps. Smoked foods may require a rub or brine well ahead of time. You also may need to thaw large cuts of frozen meat. Now's a good time to check your fuel supply, too. You may need a backup tank of propane or an extra bag of charcoal to avoid running out.
Hours to Days Before
Brine or rub according to your recipe. Always refrigerate meat during this period. After brining, pat meat dry. If time allows, let it air-dry, uncovered, in the fridge another 6 to 24 hours. This creates a tackier surface that attracts smoke and makes poultry skin crispier.
One Hour Before
Put a generous handful (1 cup) of wood chips in water to soak. Adjust grill grate heights to fit large meat cuts if necessary. You'll be using indirect heat here, so start only one burner or bank charcoal off to the sides. Set a heatproof pan of hot water either directly over the heat source or nestled next to the coals.
Go Time
Drain wood chips and place them on an 18-inch length of foil, folding it over and crimping edges to make a sealed packet.
No Peeking!
Opening the grill releases heat, so keep the lid closed as much as possible, and use a thermometer. Smoking can give meat a pink tint beneath the surface (called a "smoke ring") or even all the way through smaller cuts, so rely on a meat thermometer rather than your eye to know when food is cooked.
